Football | Crete-Monee says hi to high expectations

With winning now the protocol at Crete-Monee, fifth-year coach Jerry Verde's biggest worry this season was getting his numbers to a manageable point.

"We had over 100 kids (on varsity), and now we have it down to 68," Verde said Thursday while taking a break from practice. "When we started here in 2007 we had 120 in the entire program, and now we have about 160."

Winning breads interest, and the Warriors, who were 8-4 last season, have been doing a lot of winning lately. They advanced to the state quarterfinals for the second year in a row last season, raising the bar even higher.

"Our juniors only know the quarterfinals," Verde said.

Verde returns four players on offense and five on defense. Junior wide receiver LaQuon Treadwell (56 catches, 811 yards, 7 TDs) is the top returner on offense. Michigan-bound senior free safety Anthony Standifer, who led the state with nine interceptions last season, is the top returner on defense.

"When I was a freshman I knew kids that played at Crete and they didn't win," Standifer said. "We went to the playoffs my freshman year and I was one of the five freshmen that got moved up. I saw how things were run. Same for sophomore year, and last year we made the quarterfinals again.

"Camp is pretty hard. We had over 100 kids, and even some girls came out. We had a lot of fun. Two-a-days were tough. We have three road games to start, and our mentality is 'No excuses.' "

The Warriors lost to Danville 35-14 in a Class 6A quarterfinal last season and open against T.F. South on Aug. 26.